ephs wrote:i noticed that many lifters, who lift huge amounts of weight at deadlifts, use a mixed grip. do you recommend it? should i change the grip from working set to working set then? i mean left underhand, right overhand one day and right underhand, left overhand the next day?

Yes.

Stu Ward
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Let thy food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be thy food.~Hippocrates
Strength is the adaptation that leads to all other adaptations that you really care about - Charles Staley
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Thanks TimD

There are three main grips. They are very much based on their grip strength: Double-overhand/underhand, Mixed grip and Hook grip.
Double overhand is the weakest grip, mixed holds better, and hook is the best. There actually has been some research about this. Hook grip is the grip that weigthlifters use. It's painful at first, but when you get used to it, it's pretty firm and strong.

would it cause big imbalances to always use the same mix grip without alternating the arms between underhand and overhand? i'm not going to do this, im just curious. my grip sometimes sucks on rows at the last reps, maybe hook grip could fix this or i should do some exercises for my grip, but this would be isolation work hehehe.

ephs wrote:would it cause big imbalances to always use the same mix grip without alternating the arms between underhand and overhand? i'm not going to do this, im just curious. my grip sometimes sucks on rows at the last reps, maybe hook grip could fix this or i should do some exercises for my grip, but this would be isolation work hehehe.

My own developing theory is that lifting weights reveals the asymmetries you already have, while possibly creating new ones.

So in my case I have some pre-existing difference between my two shoulders, and a significant strength difference left-to-right from toe to finger. If I open up my left hand on a deadlift my shoulder will be killing me within a half hour, but when I open up my right hand there is no problem. This is despite the fact that I've gone far heavier for many months opening my right than I ever went opening my left. If my body were perfect I could switch off, but it is not so I cannot.

I used to go double overhand for warm-ups and then switch to mixed for the top set but I don't do that anymore, because if I warm up with a different action than the top set then its not really a warm up. I can move more weight if I use the same motion from first to last. Some will object that doing an overhand grip is better for building grip strenght to which I respond: to what end?

If grip is a problem on rows then do more rows. Personally I would not sacrifice my deadlift and its benefits to legs and back over an insistence on one kind of grip or another.

KenDowns wrote:My own developing theory is that lifting weights reveals the asymmetries you already have, while possibly creating new ones.

I agree completely. This reflects my personal and professional training experience.

Putting the body under a load doesn't automatically iron out asymmetries and imbalances. The body will get the movement done, and you'll get stronger at getting that movement done in that specific way. This is why mobility and specific corrective approaches for a person's exact needs are so important. You have to address the problems that will hold you back before you groove them in and strengthen them.

This is why I'm such a pain to my clients about their feet and back. "Turn that foot forward again." "Keep your chest up." "Even out your grip." It's all about getting you to move correctly, and then reinforcing that. You can't just depend on heavy weights to correct form - and any look at a true 1-rep max attempt will show you that technique and form doesn't improve automatically under a heavy load.

what do you think of rack pulls? i'm considering to switch to rack pulls and work on my hamstring inflexibility til i don't need to squat down so deep to reach the bar at conventional deadlifts anymore. i already had some success with stretching. maybe this problem is fixed in a few months or so.

ephs wrote:what do you think of rack pulls? i'm considering to switch to rack pulls and work on my hamstring inflexibility til i don't need to squat down so deep to reach the bar at conventional deadlifts anymore. i already had some success with stretching. maybe this problem is fixed in a few months or so.